Drum roll...

Thank you all for helping me celebrate this special month in my world and for entering The World According to Eggface Celebrating 8 Years of Health Giveaway!

The random generator has selected:

Nike Workout Bag Prize Package Winner - Lori M. bayoucityxxxxx@gmail.com
Quest Nutrition Protein Bar Variety Box Winner - Kelly N. kellyxxxxxxxxx@gmail.com
Celebrate Vitamins Vanilla Cake Batter Protein Winner - Lauren L. laurenxxxxxxx@gmail.com

Congratulations! You have mail!

Not a winner this time... no worries another Eggface Giveaway is already in the works be sure to follow along on the Blog, Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest for the latest eggciting announcements!

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world.

Breakfast: I saw an advertisement for IHOP's new Blueberry Cannoli Pancakes, pancakes topped with blueberry compote and sweetened ricotta cream. I just had to make a healthier version. I made a batch of my protein packed ricotta pancakes. I nuked a 1/2 cup frozen wild blueberries with a Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani for about 2 minutes. I spooned a little of the blueberry mixture on each pancake and topped it with my version of ricotta cream. Sooo good.

Shelly's Sweetened Ricotta Cream

1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Orange Marmalade
dash of Cinnamon

Mix till well blended makes enough to top 8 pancakes. This is also AWESOME as a dip for sliced apples or strawberries or just eaten on it's own.

Remember leftover Ricotta Pancakes are great reheated (in pan or microwave) or cold with almond butter smeared on them, or a delicious dessert.

More Eggface Pancakes

Lunch: For those of you that don't know I work from home mostly (a good & bad thing) as long as I have a laptop and wifi I can create my "office." Yesterday for most of the day my office was the patio. I fill up my bento box and unless the cat distracts me I get some work done, soak in Vitamin D and enjoy a nice lunch.

Negative to working from home is I find myself not being able to turn work off. It's not uncommon for me to look up and it be 11 PM and I'm still working on something. It does save money on business outfits (as I sit typing this in sweats and holey ones at that.)

I highly recommend going outdoors for lunch even if you do work in an real office, just find a patch of grass and plop a throw down.

Pink Box (top left): Tomatoes (from 1 of my 3 plants) and fresh Mozzarella (sprinkle S&P and oregano)

Green Box (top right): Mango Chunks

Blue Box (bottom left): Hardboiled Egg (sprinkle S&P and Bagel Spice)
Orange Box (bottom right):  Shelly's Homemade Protein Square (cross between a bar & oatmeal cookie)

More Bento Box lunches, FAQ's and an Online Source for them 
My Bento Box Pinterest Page

By the way the cat did try and distract me...

Dinner: My "I don't want to cook or clean-up but I still want to eat something hot and delicious" go-to Fish Foil Packet Dinner. Sliced up some zucchini and green onion (1 small per packet) placed it on a piece of foil. Add a piece of any fish you like (I used Tilapia.) Sprinkle with salt, pepper, sprinkle of any seasoning you like (Greek, Italian, Lemon Pepper, whatever), drizzle of olive oil (optional.) Wrap everything in foil tightly. Toss on a covered BBQ for 20 (defrosted) - 25 (frozen) minutes and depending on the thickness of the fish. Don't open the lid. Trust me it will come out perfect every time and best of all. Eat it directly from the packet and there is zero clean-up.

More Foil Packet Dinners 

Snacks: Too much coffee, the Protein Square from my bento box and a Pineapple Cottage Cheese Double.

More Protein Packed Snacks
More Days in my pouch.

If you haven't added your name to the hat for the Current Eggface Giveaway be sure to do that, it ends Sunday and check out the big news from the OAC.

Obesity Action Coalition Your Weight Matters Convention Scholarship

I am so excited to share this awesome news. The Obesity Action Coalition "Your Weight Matters" National Convention is the one event I believe EVERYONE needs to attend. The education is amazing, the opportunity to learn how to be an advocate for an issue that affects us and those we love, the fun and support system building. This is a hard war and having some fellow fighters on your side is a help believe me. I know financially though it is not always feasible. The Obesity Action Coalition wants to make attending Convention a reality for any individual with a desire to learn more about their weight and health, and this includes those who may not have the financial means to cover all the costs associated with taking part in an in-person meeting.

The OAC has proudly created the Convention Scholarship Program to help individuals by awarding grants to fund or offset the associated expenses in attending the Convention. I told you it was AWESOME news.

The OAC will award a minimum of $7,500 in scholarship awards in 2014. Any individual who is interested in receiving a scholarship to attend the Convention is eligible to apply, with need for the scholarship to be determined with the following weighted criteria:

Statement of Financial Need (50%);
Impact of Obesity on Your Life (35%);
Your Intent for Attending the Your Weight Matters Convention (15%)

George Washington University will act as the designated outside third-party to handle the review of all Convention Scholarship applications, which will ensure an objective evaluation process. The OAC will not have any involvement in the evaluation or selection of the scholarship recipients. I am personally glad of this as a Board Member that would be so hard to decide.

Individuals who have already registered to attend the 2014 National Convention are also eligible to receive scholarship awards and are welcome to submit an application.

CLICK HERE FOR PROCESS and FULL DETAILS. Go now. Apply. Tell friends too. I mean it no one should miss this and now NO ONE HAS TO. It's a life changing event and... we'll get to hang out!

APPLICATION DEADLINE  FRIDAY, JULY 25th

Healthy Protein Shake Recipes: JLo Jennifer Lopez's Spinach Protein Smoothie

I read an article the other day that said Jennifer Lopez (JLo) drinks a protein smoothie every morning. She said, "I knew the stuff that I was eating wasn’t giving me energy. I realized that after a while, and I was feeding this to my kids. Is this good for them?" she said. "So I was ready to try something different. This smoothie tastes fresh, and you’re doing something good for yourself. It makes a huge difference."

Jennifer made her comments about the smoothie while helping launch, "The Center for a Healthy Childhood," a new initiative between her Lopez Family Foundation and Montefiore Health System in her old 'hood... the Bronx. The Center will help provide mothers, children and families in the Bronx resources, healthcare and education. I love how she is paying her blessings forward.

She shared the smoothie recipe so you know I had to try it out. Here's JLo's Spinach Protein Smoothie with some slight Eggface adaptations in parentheses.

JLo's Spinach Protein Smoothie

1 handful Spinach
1 frozen Banana (I used 1/2)
1 cup Milk (JLo uses Rice Milk, I use Soy Milk for more protein)
2 scoops Almond or Sunflower Butter (I used 1 heaping Tablespoon Almond Butter)
1 scoop Protein Powder (I used Vanilla)

I searched the interwebs for a clearer recipe but no luck. The cooking term "scoop" when referring to protein powder is pretty standard. I use it myself and yes there are variations in scoop size from brand to brand but they are usually slight enough that it doesn't matter much... but "scoops" referring to the almond butter amount is what I questioned... that's not a typical measurement for almond butter and I find it hard to believe JLo is drinking "2 scoops" of almond butter in her shake every morning probably more like 2 Tablespoons but even that is a lot for one unless you are dancing 4 hour concerts. I used 1 heaping Tablespoon, seemed perfect to me. Whizzed everything in the blender on high and voila.

Verdict: Jenny from the Block's Protein Smoothie is yummy and it's a really pretty shade of green too. Other than the color you'd never know there was spinach in it, the banana completely masks it. It's sweet but not too sweet. If you like sweeter shakes maybe a little Sugar Free Torani Syrup (SF Vanilla or Mmmm SF Almond would be great in it) the frozen banana was great as a thickener and made it colder but I think next time I'll add a couple of ice cubes to make it even more frosty.

 

Her smoothie did give me a little boost of energy, felt like I could get "on the floor" and bust out some "Fly Girl" moves of my own. Give it a try.

Not into the spinach thing... Here are some of My Favorite (spinach free) Protein Shakes and Smoothies.

Eggface Celebrating 8 Years of Health Giveaway

Today is a special day in my world. 8 years ago today I had weight loss surgery (open roux-en-y RNY gastric bypass surgery) Having weight loss surgery was truly the best gift I ever gave myself. That also means The World According to Eggface blog which I started to document this major life change is in it's 8th year in existence and my birthday on the 28th so June is a big month in my world. To celebrate... 

It's Giveaway Time!

The Prize: A Navy Blue Nike Gym Bag - Hit the gym, Zumba class, or use it as your carry-on when you join me in Orlando this year at #YWM2014 and it's filled with some of my post bariatric weight loss surgery protein packed favorites...

Single Serving Packets of Celebrate Vitamins Tomato Soup and Chicken Soup High Protein Meal Replacement (29 grams of protein per serving)

Single Serving Travel Packets of all of Chike Nutrition's flavors (1 each of Chocolate Bliss, Very Vanilla, Strawberry Burst, Banana Magic, Orange Creme)

5 Single Serving Travel Packets of Chike Nutrition's High Protein Iced Coffee

A case of Quest Protein Bars (12 bar, variety pack of flavors: Coconut Cashew, Chocolate Brownie, Vanilla Almond Crunch, Double Chocolate Chunk, Cinnamon Roll, White Chocolate Raspberry, Peanut Butter Supreme, Strawberry Cheesecake, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Apple Pie, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Banana Nut Muffin.)

1 Jar of Chike Nutrition's Chike PB - Powdered Peanut Butter (I love it mixed in Oatmeal)

1 Endura Cool Bandana (I love these when walking or gardening in the summer heat)

1 - 20 oz. Blue Blenderball Shaker

An Eggface "Remember Why You Started" Black Bracelet and a Red Your Weight Matters Bracelet

and I'll choose a second winner to win a case of Quest Protein Bars (12 bar, variety pack of flavors: Coconut Cashew, Chocolate Brownie, Vanilla Almond Crunch, Double Chocolate Chunk, Cinnamon Roll, White Chocolate Raspberry, Peanut Butter Supreme, Strawberry Cheesecake, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Apple Pie, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Banana Nut Muffin.)

and a third winner will win a 30 serving tub of Celebrate Vitamins Vanilla Cake Batter ENS + Protein (25 grams of protein, 500 mg. Calcium Citrate, High Potency Multivitamin and 4 grams of Fiber in each serving) One of my very favorites. In fact I just made myself this shake to celebrate...

Shelly's It's My Party Birthday Cake Shake

1 single serve packet (or 2 scoops) Celebrate Vitamins Vanilla Cake Batter ENS
8 oz. Soy Milk (any milk will do)
a few cubes of Ice (or my High Protein Frozen Yogurt Cubes)

Blend on high. Top with Homemade No Sugar Added Whipped Cream and a few multicolored Nonpareils.
 

How to Enter: 1.) LIKE The World According to Eggface Facebook Page 2.) COME BACK HERE and LEAVE A COMMENT on this blog posting (include a name and some email address where I can contact you if you are the winner) Scroll down to # of comments below to leave yours. That's it, easy peasy.

For fun... and completely optional tell me whether you are pre-op, post-op, non-surgical, friend or family of someone affected by obesity.

***Want extra chances to win?***

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Hey everyone enter the @Eggface Celebrating 8 years of Health Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/naojtmj

* Follow me on Pinterest and pin at least one of your favorite Eggface recipes or an Eggface recipe you'd like to try to one of your Pinterest boards. Put #Eggface in the description.

Contest Period Ends: Sunday, June 29th, midnight (Pacific), sometime Monday, June 30th. I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the address provided. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. Remember winners MUST be a Facebook follower (aka have LIKED) of the The World According to Eggface. One comment entry per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours, especially at night if I'm sleeping Zzzz) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the contiguous United States (48 contiguous only, sorry it's a legal and $ thing.)

THANK YOU for always sharing the blog with your family, friends and support groups and THANK YOU for helping me celebrate the best 8 years of my life!

Good Luck!

Summer Fun With Blue Diamond Almonds

Summer begins on Saturday. Hot summer days means we'll be dining outside and using the BBQ more. One of my favorite simple pleasures of summer is sit outside with friends and family, enjoy a nice conversation and some healthy and delicious snacks. Like these that take advantage of the delicious summer fruits available...

Grilled Pineapple Skewers with Toasted Coconut Almond Greek Yogurt Dip are the perfect light and refreshing dessert after a BBQ. Peel and cube a fresh pineapple or cheat (I won't tell) most grocery stores sell fresh pineapple cubes in the produce section. Thread 5 or 6 cubes onto metal skewers and place them on the BBQ grill. Cook about 4 minutes, till you get some golden grill marks, flip and do the same on the other side. Grilled pineapple smells amazing and you just may have a few neighbors come over to see what's cooking so make a few extra. Serve grilled pineapple skewers with this refreshing, protein packed dip.

Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut Almond Greek Yogurt Dip

6 oz. Greek Yogurt (Vanilla, Honey or Plain w/ 2 Tablespoons sweetener of your choice)
dash of Cinnamon
1 oz. Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut Almonds, chopped

In a medium bowl, combine the yogurt, sweetener if using plain yogurt (honey, agave, sugar free syrup) and dash of cinnamon. Stir well. Top with chopped Toasted Coconut Almonds. Great dip fresh or grilled fruit or eat it on it's own.

Another summertime favorite at my house is my Fruit Salad with a Twist. Chop up your favorite summer fruits and add two unexpectedly delicious twists: a splash of Coconut Rum to taste and handful of Toasted Coconut Almonds or one of Blue Diamonds great fruit flavored almonds: Strawberry, Blueberry, Raspberry or a combination of flavors.

This big beautiful fruit salad is a staple at any breakfast or brunch I host because it can be made the night before, one less thing to worry about and leaves more time to spend time with guests. It is a delicious accompaniment to my Cinnamon Churro Ricotta Pancakes.

This post is in partnership with Blue Diamond Almonds. For the purposes of this post and recipe development Blue Diamond Almonds provided me with products used. Thanks for the yummy nuts. Want to learn more about Blue Diamond Almonds great products LIKE their Facebook page and tell them The World According to Eggface told you to stop by. Hope you give one of these summer fun recipes a try.

A Dozen Protein Packed (and Portable) Healthy Meals or Snacks

Here are a dozen of my favorite protein packed meals and/or snacks. All are pretty portable so even if there are no healthy food options around with one of these in tow you will will be good to go.

1. Hard Boiled Eggs - One large egg contains 6 grams of protein and only 70 calories and eggs are already are wrapped up and ready to go. I toss a packet of salt & pepper in my purse just for occasions like this.

2. Ricotta Pancakes - I always have a few extras after making Ricotta Pancakes for breakfast and they are delicious cold. I smear them with a little almond butter (sometimes SF jam) and wrap in foil.

3. Protein Shakes - Store a baggie of protein powder in your blender bottle shaker. Grab a bottle of water or some milk and shake, shake, shake. Some protein companies are catching on and making travel packets but if your favorite doesn't try this baggie trick.

4. Veggies and Dip - Baby carrot, celery sticks, bell pepper strips, cucumbers and a little container of Greek yogurt dip or nut butter.

5. Cheese - A few cubes of cheese or a cheesestick, a bunch of grapes or strawberries and some almonds. All you need is a park bench with a great view.

6. Cold Cuts - Cold cuts are the ultimate in protein packed portability. Here's a ton of ideas: 5 Things to Do With Cold Cuts including roll-ups and my cucumber "sandwiches"

7. Protein Bars - I have a few favorites and a few that are sturdier and more portable than others. Look for one without a lot of sugar, fat, and calories, lower in carbs and high in protein. I rarely eat a whole bar at a sitting, usually a hunk or half when I want something sweet. My no-crush tip for transporting them.
 

8. Cottage Cheese - a dollop in my little Pret a Paquet Snack Pack topped with fruit or one of those Cottage Singles (I like that the fruit is separate you can add as much or as little as you like)

9. Greek Yogurt - Mix in Sugar Free Torani Syrup, defrosted frozen fruit, fresh fruit, powdered peanut butter, sweetener of choice and a few SF chocolate chips (pictured.) On Sunday, make a few Yogurt Parfaits for the week.

10. Crunchy Snacks - I am a California girl so I love almonds. Other crunchy favs: Crunchamame, Crunchy Cheese, Kay's Cookie Bites and Homemade Roasted Chickpeas.

Shelly's Roasted Chickpeas

1 (15 oz.) can Chickpeas (aka Garbanzo, Ceci)
1 Tablespoon Basil Flavored Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Rinse and drain chickpeas. Toss with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Spread on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 400 for 45-50 minutes. Turning every 15 minutes, listen they will start to sound crunchy when you stir them. Watch them in the last 5 minutes. Crunchy and golden nut-like globes of wonderfulness. Warning: these little suckers are ADDICTIVE. 

11. Protein Muffins - These take 15 minutes total from prep to enjoying. A few of my favorite flavors: Pistachio, Almond, Pumpkin, Chocolate!

12. Bean Salad - Bean salads are another example of something you can make on a Sunday to have for lunches during the week. They get better the next day and day after that. I rinse and drain cans (I love S&W brand), add a ton of veggies, sometimes tuna or leftover chicken and voila.

More Portable Protein Packed Meals: Eggface Bento Box Lunches
My Bento Lunch Pinterest Board

Drum roll...

Thanks to MilkSplash for letting me sample their product. I enjoyed the taste test. Thank you all for entering The World According to Eggface and MilkSplash Giveaway!

The random generator has selected:

Ronnie **************@aol.com
and Rhea ******@gmail.com

Congratulations! You are the winners of the Try MilkSplash Duo and $25 Target Gift Card Prize Package. You have mail!

Not a winner this time... no worries a little bird tells me another Eggface Giveaway begins VERY soon be sure to follow along on the Blog, Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest for the latest eggciting announcements! June is a BIG month on this blog.

Bacon Cheeseburger Deviled Eggs

A perfect protein packed dish to bring to a block party potluck or a make as an appetizer at Dad's backyard BBQ this Father's Day. Make a double batch and hide a couple in the kitchen because they'll get snatched up fast.

Shelly's Bacon Cheeseburger Deviled Eggs

4 Hardboiled Eggs
1/3 cup Leftover Cooked Ground Beef, crumbled
2 Tablespoons Greek Yogurt, plain
2 Tablespoons (plus additional Tablespoon for top) Shredded Colby Jack Cheese
2 Tablespoons Leftover Cooked Bacon, crumbled (or storebought Real Bacon Bits)
dash of Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Hard cook eggs. Cool. Cut in half. Remove yolks and mash with yogurt till smooth-ish. Add bacon, cheese, salt, and pepper. Spoon back into egg whites. Add crumbled beef and few shreds of additional shredded cheese on top.

How I hard cook eggs: Place eggs in the pot. Fill the pot with cold water till 1" over eggs. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and cook for 20 minutes. Pour off hot water and cover eggs with very cold water. This is an important step which prevents the greenish ring you sometimes see on yolks. When eggs are cool enough to handle. Crack & peel away the shell. Chill.

If you like this try...

Bacon Cheeseburger Bites
Bacon Onion Cheeseburger Mini Meatloaves

My Weight Loss Surgery Friendly Party Food Pinterest Page

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world.

Breakfast: A Homemade Protein Square (cross between an oatmeal cookie and protein bar, dense and chewy, not too sweet)

Eggface Grab and Go Breakfast Ideas

Lunch: Roast Beef, Cheddar Cheese and Spinach Cold Cut Roll-up dipped in Mustard. This is one of my favorites. I also had 4 tomatoes from my plants I'm growing on the patio. They never made it in the house I popped them in my mouth warm from the sun. What's that saying, "God made dirt, dirt don't hurt." ;)

5 Things to Do With Cold Cuts
10 Favorite Protein Sources

Dinner: Foil Fish Packet. A go-to dinner at my house. Especially in the summer heat because of the minimal prep and no heating up the kitchen. Shelly's Tilapia Puttanesca Foil Fish Packet: slice up some zucchini placed it on a piece of foil. Add a piece of any fish you like (I used tilapia, shrimp or scallops would be great too, just lower the time by 5 minutes) Sprinkle with salt, pepper, 1 green onion, 1/4 cup canned chopped tomatoes (S&W Italian Style), add 2 Tablespoons olive tapenade (store bought, usually found near bulk olives or make your own) Wrap everything in foil tightly.

Toss on a covered BBQ for 20 (defrosted) - 25 (frozen) minutes and depending on the thickness of the fillet. Don't open the lid. Trust me it will come out perfect every time and best of all. If you are really bad like me eat it directly from the packet and there is zero clean-up... well OK a fork.

More Eggface Foil Packet Dinners

Snacks: Lots of coffee and I made another batch of that Cinnamon Protein Ice Cream I made last week.

I'm dying to make one of those Cinnamon Churro Ricotta Pancake Ice Cream Sandwiches again and I have some ricotta to use... tomorrow. Today I had a couple of scoops with a drizzle of Sugar Free Caramel Sauce.

More Eggface Protein Ice Cream Recipes
More Days in my Pouch

MilkSplash Liquid Milk Enhancer Review and Giveaway

When MilkSplash offered me an opportunity to try their new product I was excited because I love to try new products. I had already spotted this on the shelf at my local Walmart and thought oooh that might be something fun to jazz up a protein shake.

MilkSplash is zero-calorie milk flavoring, it comes in a variety of flavors (natural & artificial, they are working on an all natural version) Cocoa Loco, Sir Strawberry Swirl, Orange Cream Dream, Cookies ‘N Cream and Jammin’ Banana. There is a very small amount of sugar used in MilkSplash but it is so low it qualifies as a zero-calorie product. Check out the MilkSplash web site for all the 411.

1 squirt to an 8 oz. glass of milk and you've made a tasty flavored milk. For those of us that can't do cow's milk you can mix it in any non-dairy milk. I mixed it in Soy and in an Almond and Coconut Blend milk and it was delicious and blended well in both those. I haven't tried it but I did read you can make it hot. You warm the milk first and then give it a squirt, just be careful squirting into hot liquids.

So of course I had to make a protein shake with it...

Shelly's Orange Cream Dream Protein Shake

8 oz. Milk (I used Soy this time)
a squirt (or 2) of Orange Cream Dream MilkSplash
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
a few cubes of ice

Blend on high. You know those 50/50 ice cream bars we used to get from the ice cream truck. It's just like those! I topped it with No Sugar Added Homemade Whipped Cream (next time I'm going to squirt a little MilkSplash in my whipper for flavored whippage) Yum!

I also mixed it in Greek yogurt and made a parfait...

Shelly's Orange Cream Dream Greek Yogurt Parfait

3 oz. Greek Yogurt
a squirt of Orange Cream Dream MilkSplash
4 oz. Mandarin Orange segments, drained

Squirt MilkSplash into Greek Yogurt, stir till well blended. Layer in a parfait glass with orange segments. This would be a great make ahead, grab and go breakfast. Make it in a plastic cup the night before, cover with plastic wrap, grab a plastic spoon and in the morning grab your protein packed breakfast parfait and hit the road!

I will be experimenting with MilkSplash's other flavors in Protein Ice Cream. I'm thinking Jammin’ Banana with a handful of peanuts mixed in and I think it would be a fun to mix in my frozen High Protein Greek Yogurt Cubes. I'll let you know how it goes.

I've seen it displayed in the section of the store (Target, Walmart both carry it in my area, find a store in your area) that sells cocoa and the section that sells powdered drink mix packets so check both those areas. Each bottle makes 24 servings. It doesn't require refrigeration and should be used within one month of opening.

Want to learn more... LIKE MilkSplash on Facebook and tell them The World According to Eggface sent you over.

Want a chance to try MilkSplash...  the MilkSplash folks have graciously offered two of my blog readers the same gift pack I received. It's Giveaway Time!

The Prize: 2 full size bottles of MilkSplash (flavors will vary) and a $25 Target Gift Card use it to buy the other flavors or put it toward a blender to blend up my delicious Orange Cream Dream MilkSplash Protein Shake, whatever you like.

How to Enter: 1.) LIKE The World According to Eggface and MilkSplash's Facebook Pages 2.) COME BACK HERE and LEAVE A COMMENT on this blog posting (include a name and some email address where I can contact you if you are the winner) Scroll down to # of comments below to leave yours. That's it, easy peasy.

***Want an extra chance to win?***

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Enter the @Eggface and @MilkSplashPlz Make a MilkSplash Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/l8zvt25

Contest Period Ends: Sunday, June 15th midnight (Pacific), sometime Monday, June 16th. I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the address provided. You'll have **48 hours to respond to my email** or another winner will be chosen. Remember winners MUST be a Facebook follower (aka have LIKED) both of the pages listed above. One COMMENT ENTRY per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the contiguous United States (48 contiguous only, sorry it's a legal and $ thing.) The products, information and gift card have been provided by MilkSplash, your prize will ship directly from them, winner please allow 4-6 weeks to receive your prize.

Good Luck!

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world.

Breakfast: Farmer's Market morning. Made up a High Protein Iced Coffee in my blenderbottle and I was out the door. Got some great stuff at the market: more peaches and cherries (I pitted and froze some for future protein shakes), sweet, red and green onions, zucchini, tomatoes (my plants are doing well but slooooow, yesterday I picked 3 cherry tomatoes LOL not quite enough for a salad), cauliflower, avocados, and a big bunch of basil I already turned into pesto sauce. Later today, I'm going take about half the pesto and make pesto cubes. I spoon the sauce into an ice cube tray and when they are frozen I pop out the cubes and store them in a freezer Ziploc bag for use in sauces, soups and dips (drop them in frozen or nuke 20 seconds to defrost.)

More Eggface Protein Shakes and Smoothies

Lunch: Came home and heated up leftovers. This was a delicious dinner and leftovers were even better today for lunch.

Shelly's Sweet Potato Shepherds Pie

2 medium-sized Sweet Potatoes (or Yams)
1 Tablespoon Milk
1 Tablespoon Butter (optional)
1/2 pound Ground Beef
1 Onion, diced
2 Green Onions, diced
1/2 cup Frozen Peas, defrosted
1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
1 teaspoon Thyme
1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
a few twists of Black Pepper
salt to taste

I stab the sweet potatoes and toss them in this gadget. It steams them to perfection in the microwave in 10 minutes, test with a knife you want the knife to go in without resistance. Scoop the good stuff out and discard the skins. Smoosh (very technical cooking term) till smooth with a fork with a sprinkle of salt and 1 Tablespoon of milk and butter (optional) it's also fine without the added butter calories but I like the taste. Set aside.

Saute beef (turkey can be used too) till no pink is seen. Drain any fats and set aside. Saute onions till golden, add back meat, and remaining ingredients (except sweet potato and Parmesan). Cook a minute or so and stir to combine. Spoon into ramekins or a pie dish. Top with sweet potato, sprinkle with Parmesan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. The last minute or so I broil the top to make the cheese golden brown. Leftovers freeze well in fact, I made 4 ramekins (2 we ate for dinner, 2 for lunch today) and a gratin dish I froze for later in the week.

Dinner: Fired up the BBQ to make beef kabobs and grilled zucchini. When I first got home from errands I put the meat in a gallon Ziploc with 1/4 cup of store-bought Italian dressing and a sprinkle of Greek seasoning and placed it in the fridge. Periodically throughout the day I jiggled the bag. When I was ready to grill I removed the meat from the marinade (discard bag & excess) and skewered the meat cubes. I sliced some of the zucchini I bought lengthwise, swiped them with olive oil, sprinkled a little Greek seasoning. I tossed them on the grill and while they cooking and were making the neighborhood smell amazing I mixed up a yogurt dip. I dip everything... but especially meat helps post-op (adds moisture and bonus protein.)

Shelly's Pesto Parmesan Greek Yogurt Dip

3 oz. Greek Yogurt, plain
1 Tablespoon Parmesan, grated
1 Tablespoon Pesto Sauce (storebought or make your own)
Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper

Mix till well blended. Great for dipping meats, veggies or as a salad dressing.

Snacks: Lots of coffee (those splashes of soy milk must be accounted for) and I made up a batch of Cinnamon Protein Ice Cream (pictured is a double batch) 20 minutes in the ice cream maker and any protein shake can become this...

Shelly's Cinnamon Protein Ice Cream

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
2 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Torani Syrup (I used SF Vanilla)
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

Mix together milk, protein, syrup and cinnamon. I used this gadget to mix it up. It makes it airy and lump free. If you don't have one of those just whiz it on super turbo high in the blender, you want airy. Pour into ice cream maker. Follow your machine's instructions for freezing. You can eat it right away it is soft serve-ish but I like to put it in the freezer to set for an hour.

More Eggface Protein Ice Cream

I took a scoop, sandwiched in between leftover Cinnamon Churro Ricotta Pancakes. AMAZING! Healthy, protein-packed ice cream sandwich for dessert. A great finish to an especially yummy day.

More Days in my Pouch